Canecutter Way AGM 2017

Canecutter Way AGM 2017

Thank You to all who attended the Canecutter Way AGM at the Mena Creek Hotel on Wednesday June 14, 2017.

It was great to have Cassowary Coast Regional Council represented by the Mayor, John Kremastos, Cr Ben Heath and Tourism & Economic Development Officer, Richard Blanchette. Their presentations on tourism and the 2019 World Rafting Championships at Tully were very interesting and informative.

Les Cavanagh remains as Chairman
Sheryl Cavanagh remains as Secretary
Judy Evans remains as Treasurer

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Chairman’s Report from Les Cavanagh

Once again, I’d like to thank you all for coming tonight.

The past year has seen good results along the Canecutter Way and across the region with some reports of businesses experiencing their best season in a decade.

There is great confidence evident in the tourism industry with a new resort being approved at Wongaling Beach, Dunk Island Resort due to reopen late this year or early next year, major improvements being made to this hotel and the brand new caravan park just opened next door by Mark & Judy Evans.

DAY TRIPPERS:
We have just recently had the 20th Annual Kurrimine Beach Hop fun weekend & car show at the King Reef Resort. At the resort alone, this event attracted 110 visitors to the region for 3 nights and many people I spoke to were staying at other accommodation at Kurrimine Beach. Events like this are great drivers of day trips into our region with many coming on Sunday for the Show & Shine.

Early last year I organised a couple of Cars & Coffee events at Mena Creek & Tully. Cars & Coffee is a gathering of people interested in motoring to socialise and create or develop relationships.
With the help of Nick & Corrine Devine, we have started holding Cars & Coffee Mena Creek events every month which has been successful so far and will attract more day trippers to the Canecutter Way as it gains momentum.

Events and activities aimed at the day trip market have a huge audience, with figures from Tourism Research Australia showing that over 50% of tourist visits to the Cassowary Coast region are Day Trippers –  the actual number from 2015 was 256,000 day trip visitors which includes residents and tourists staying in surrounding regions day tripping to the Cassowary Coast.
So that is something to think about when prioritising who you are marketing your business to.

DISCOVERY MAP:
We reprinted the Canecutter Way Discovery Map in September 2016 and welcome new advertisers Charley’s Chocolate, Snapping Tours and Etty Bay Caravan Park to the map.
We have the maps being distributed at Visitor Information Centres at Babinda, Innisfail, Tully & Cardwell.
In addition to the VICs, we have the maps being distributed by the advertisers on the map and in various other businesses such as Ray’s Barber Shop, Innisfail, Castaways Resort, Mirriwinni Hotel and the Frosty Mango on the way up from Townsville.
All feedback on the map is positive, with Frosty Mango recently asking for more maps and saying it is the best map they’ve seen.

For our wider distribution, the Canecutter Way has partnered with Paronella Park who are folding the maps into an insert for their A4 brochures.
At the recent Melbourne and Brisbane Caravan & Camping Shows, Mark & Judy distributed about 2,000 Canecutter Way maps with the Paronella Park brochures – at the Drive North Queensland stand, and the Caravanning Queensland stand. They gave out another 200 maps at the Melbourne show as inserts in the Tropical Coast Tourism Explore Magazine.
In addition to this, the Paronella Park brochures with maps go with Caravanning Queensland to every caravanning show around Australia.
Paronella Park also distribute their brochures to over 140 sites in the Townsville region with Canecutter Way maps inside.
By my reckoning, Paronella Park have distributed over 8,000 maps in their brochures since September last year.
This is all at no cost to the Canecutter Way and I would like the minutes to note that the Canecutter Way offers a vote of thanks to Mark & Judy for making this happen.

This partnership between the Canecutter Way and Paronella Park is a good example of how important developing, maintaining and strengthening relationships is to the success of organisations, businesses and the region as a whole.

CCRC:
I would like to extend my thanks The Cassowary Coast Regional Council for their belief that Tourism is key to the regions success and their willingness to engage with Tourism representative bodies like the Canecutter Way.

COMMITTEE:
I would also like to thank the committee for your time and support. You are volunteers, and the time you spend on Canecutter Way matters is a donation to the region and the businesses we represent.

CUSTOMER SERVICE:
In closing, I would like to suggest to you that you keep in mind that the single most important aspect of the tourism industry is customer service – that your goal should be to provide such exemplary service that every visitor to your business is so delighted that they go away as an advocate for our region and influence others to visit us.

Thank you again for your time and attendance.
Les Cavanagh